PRISM 2026 Masterclasses: Practical Governance Skills You Can Use Immediately
PRISM 2026 is designed for leaders who want more than inspiration—they want practical governance tools they can use immediately.
On October 5, 2026, PRISM offers a slate of half-day Masterclasses built for hands-on learning: how to design advisory boards that actually work, how to choose the right board path for your next seat, how to pressure-test governance under real scrutiny, how to structure a board year for strategic impact, and how to lead credible oversight in fast-moving areas like AI.
Below is a preview of the Masterclasses and the outcomes participants can expect.
Morning Masterclasses (8:30 AM–12:30 PM ET)
Advisory Boards: When They Are Best Suited & Implementation Pitfalls
(Dr. Denis Mowbray)
Advisory boards occupy a distinctive niche in private-company governance—less formal than statutory boards and free from fiduciary obligations, yet capable of delivering meaningful strategic value when thoughtfully designed and effectively managed.
This session prepares experienced directors and senior executives to evaluate advisory boards from three perspectives: as principals considering formation, as members invited to serve, and as leaders responsible for board effectiveness. Participants will explore predictable failure points—misaligned expertise, unclear mandates, founder dominance, declining engagement, and lack of renewal—and the behavioral governance practices that keep advisory boards valuable as the business evolves.
As Dr. Mowbray notes: “Advisory boards are possibly the most over-recommended and under-designed tool in American private-company governance, and getting them wrong quietly costs founders, families, and CEOs in real terms.”
Board Selection: Which Board is Right for You?
(Naomi Kent)
Landing the right board seat starts with knowing which type of board is the best fit for you—public, private, advisory, family-owned, or PE-backed—because each requires a distinct strategy, network, and value proposition.
This workshop helps participants move past the “too broad” trap by completing a proprietary Board Fit assessment and identifying where their experience, skills, network, and attributes are most valuable. With guided insights and 1:1 support, attendees build a targeted plan to accelerate their board search and approach PRISM networking with clarity and purpose.
Is Your Governance Strong Enough to Survive Pressure?
(Susana Sierra & Mary Francia)
Boards are operating under tighter scrutiny than many private companies realize. What once passed as “good enough governance” is now a source of real exposure—reputational, regulatory, financial, and operational.
This interactive Masterclass gives directors, CEOs, and investors a practical framework to evaluate whether governance is truly working—or simply documented. Participants assess governance strength across board effectiveness, strategy and resilience, incentives, stakeholder pressures, risk and crisis readiness, and compliance effectiveness.
Mary Francia captures the challenge: “Boards routinely discuss culture, strategy, resilience, incentives, and risk. Yet many of the factors that determine long-term performance remain difficult to see and even harder to evaluate.”
She adds: “This interactive masterclass helps directors, CEOs, and investors move governance from abstract concepts to observable and measurable dimensions.”
Afternoon Masterclasses (1:30 PM–5:00 PM ET)
Annual Board Plans: Structuring the Board’s Year for Strategic Impact
(Dr. Denis Mowbray)
An Annual Board Plan (ABP) is a powerful yet underutilized tool that helps boards move beyond reactive oversight toward proactive governance and strategic impact.
This hands-on workshop shows participants how to align board agendas with strategic priorities, balance time across oversight and shaping work, and build flexibility for emerging issues without losing strategic focus. Participants begin drafting a tailored plan and leave with templates and an agenda redesign they can put to work quickly.
As Dr. Mowbray puts it: “Whoever controls the agenda controls the board, and in too many public and private companies, that control has quietly slipped to the executive.”
Building Board AI Fluency: A Practical Approach to AI Risk & Governance
(Joanna Ridgway, Paula Fontana, Jenny Pollock & Tamara Gracon)
AI is no longer a future topic—it is a governance topic.
This interactive Masterclass is designed for board members and senior leaders who want to deepen their understanding of AI risk, governance, and fiduciary oversight. Through practical scenarios and guided discussion, participants explore how boards should oversee AI strategy, manage emerging risks, ensure ethical and responsible use, and evaluate AI proposals with disciplined language tied to real business value.
Paula Fontana emphasizes the focus: “In this Masterclass, we dive straight into the hard governance realities to help you look past the AI hype. This session equips directors with disciplined, common language and practical tools to look at any AI proposal and immediately see the line to real business value.”
Learn to Think Like a Board Member: Case Study Board Simulation
(Naomi Kent)
This highly interactive boardroom simulation puts participants directly into high-stakes governance challenges to test and elevate board-level judgment.
Working in small groups that mirror a board of directors, attendees assume roles, debate tough decisions, clarify the line between governance and management, and reach consensus on a course of action that serves shareholders and stakeholders. It’s real-time decision-making, peer-level challenge, and a rare opportunity to build boardroom presence.
Post-Conference Program
Behavioral Governance Review (BGR): A New Approach to Board Effectiveness
(Dr. Denis Mowbray)
Traditional board reviews often measure compliance and miss the behaviors that determine whether boards govern well and influence performance—especially in closely held and family firms.
This one-day post-conference program introduces the Behavioral Governance Review (BGR), a four-part method that surfaces trust, candor, and knowledge-sharing dynamics. The session is predominantly hands-on (70%), paired with strategic context (30%), and integrates family-enterprise dynamics throughout.
Dr. Mowbray explains: “Most board reviews measure compliance and miss the behavioral questions that actually determine whether your board governs well and influences performance, especially in closely held and family firms.”
Add a Masterclass to your PRISM 2026 agenda and leave with tools you can apply immediately—whether you’re strengthening oversight, structuring strategic board time, preparing for your next seat, or building AI fluency for the boardroom.